Useful Software

We have tried to produce an extensive list of software that you may find useful for originating and handling digital artwork on a range of budgets. 

We do not recommend or endorse any of these applications, as each has its pros and cons, and some are only useful in certain situations, but we are happy to provide advice. Our aim is not to be prescriptive and where possible for you to be able to use the software you already have. 

PDF software 

• Adobe Acrobat  create and modify PDFs from any Windows and Macintosh application.
• Adobe Acrobat Reader  free program to view and print PDFs (Win, Mac, Unix).
• GhostScript  free for non-commercial users with some PDF functionality (Win, Mac, Unix)     

FTP software 

Macintosh

• Interarchy (formerly known as Anarchie) 
• Fetch 
• Vicomsoft FTP      

Windows

• WS_FTP 
• CuteFTP 
• FTP Explorer      

Compression Software 

• Stuffit for Macintosh (and now Windows too)
• WinZip for Windows
• PK Zip for Windows, DOS, OS/2, UNIX     

PostScript Software (for EPS) 

• Adobe PostScript  learn about PostScript and obtain PostScript printer drivers
• Ghostview/GhostScript  an interpreter of the PostScript language for Linux, Windows, Macintosh and UNIX
• Adobe Illustrator  a professional EPS artwork program for Windows and Macintosh
• Corel Draw  an alternative EPS creator for Windows, Macintosh and Linux     

Image Software (for TIFFs) 

• Adobe Photoshop  a professional image program for Windows and Macintosh  
• Paint Shop Pro  a cheaper (but still good) alternative for Windows
• Graphic Converter  a cheaper (but still good) alternative for Macintosh
• Gimp a free (open source) alternative to the above. Quite tricky to use but plenty of tutorials are available on the web.
• Paint.Net a free (open source) alternative to the above. Good for creating and editing TIFFs, and has a very user-friendly interface.